


Demonswap: The Devil and I

by CynicalBonehead



Category: Hiveswap, Homestuck
Genre: Alternate Universe - Demons, Anxiety Attacks, Character Death, Choking, Dammek's past is haunting him, Demon Hunters, Demon Summoning, Demon/Human Relationships, Demonic Possession, Demonstuck, Derse and Prospit, Drug Use, F/F, F/M, Human AU, M/M, Multi, Mutilation, Paranormal Investigators, Recreational Drug Use, Tags will be updated as more chapters will be added, Xefdam, demonswap, folykup, kupdam
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-04
Updated: 2019-03-21
Packaged: 2019-11-09 08:08:45
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,065
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17998118
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CynicalBonehead/pseuds/CynicalBonehead
Summary: The town of Prospit has always had a capricious history with the paranormal. The majority of it's citizens either use it to bring tourists in, or are convinced that the stories are just that.Dammek was the latter, until one mistake changed everything. This starts to connect him to those who are heavily impacted by the most prominent supernatural force in Prospit, Demons.With a team assembled, Dammek and his new friends hope to shed some light on why Prospit is a hotbed for paranormal fuckheads messing things up.(Each chapter will be similar to an episode like a tv show. Introductions to characters. Hiveswap AND Homestuck characters play a big role in this story. An additional note is Derse dreamers are demons, Prospit dreamers are humans.)





	1. Chapter 1

If you live in Prospit and somehow came across these documents, it would be advisable to turn back. Pretending to be blissfully unaware of your surroundings would be best for you after all.  
Hm?? Oh you're still here?  
I see.  
You want to understand.  
You want to understand what all of this is, yes?

I can entertain that idea. Please make yourself comfortable. A gracious host like myself will give you a few warnings before you dive right in to this mixed bag of stories.  
These documents will contain sensitive topics, such as: violence, stressful situations, possible mentions of characters wanting death, actual character death, torture...some very nasty acts, I hate to disappoint you but this isn't like those scandalous stories you usually read. Oh, and some minor religious undertones but not the kind you'd expect of course. 

This is a story about Demons, humans and other entities. So, if you didn't anticipate these topics being so prominent, I might question your own awareness of the topic in your media. That isn't what you're here for after all. Forgive me I went off topic. I'm quite sure you can contain yourself if these topics do rile you up.

If you're ready to take a peek into just what has been hidden from you, then I will find the best place to start.

Now lets see...we have quite a few players on our stage here...  
Ah yes here we go.  
I suppose this all started with four kids playing a HIGHLY dangerous game, with the perceived notion that nothing would happen to them.  
No not those four kids, you're thinking of the wrong story.  
This story starts with an idea hatched by a boy named Dammek.


	2. Highway To Hell But Instead Its An Elevator

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dammek fucking things up for people around him?  
> What else is new.  
> Angst is coming and its hard to make a description about it without giving everything away.  
> I'll give you guys complimentary puppies at the end of the chapter.

March 20th 2XXX  
That was the night Dammek lost everything in just a few hours. 

It was right after he walked out of his high school with his boyfriend at the time, Kuprum Maxlol. They looked like much different people back then..Dammek's hair was naturally down and he didn't have his signature shades. Kuprum never slouched and was less vulgar than he is present day. They were joined by their two friends, who trailed after them. They were Daraya Jonjet and Tyzias Entykk.

Tyzias sipped her thermos and kicked Dammek behind his knee. "Thanks for waiting for us gayloooooooooord. Totally wasn't trying to return some library books before leaving."

Kuprum cackled a bit while Dammek just shot him a look. "Well excuse me princess. I wanna get home before my fatass beast at home eats my couch."

Daraya looked unimpressed at the statement and just rolled her eyes. "Right. Maybe then he could find your sensibility or sanity tucked between the cushions. It probably fell out of your ass while you were gaming one day."

That kind of banter between the 4 of them was a normal occurrence at that point. Roasting each other was just part of the daily routine after school. They had already begun the walk home together when Dammek suddenly spoke up. He had to pull his phone out and go into his browser to refresh his memory.

"Anyway anyway yes Kuprum's taint smells like cheese can confirm but i have something more interesting to tell you guys. Hear me out-"

Kuprum cut him off, feeling hot in the face from embarrassment. "Dude my asshole doesn't smell like cheese. I wash that shit believe it or not. Besides, you of all people should kno-" 

Dammek interrupted again, because that boy could casually talk about their sex life to anyone. "You stuck a string cheese stick up your asshole for 5 dollars once, you have no room to talk Maxlol." Dammek's comment made Daraya laugh so hard she had to lean against a chain link fence to keep herself from falling over.

Tyzias had to take her glasses off to wipe the tears out of her eyes. Her breath was shaky, as she was super giggly. "Okay...Okay... What was it you wanted to say Dammek?" Some giggles escaped out of her when she glanced at Kuprum. She had to avoid looking at him until she'd stop laughing. 

Dammek avoided the glares from Kuprum, "I was doing my nightly binge of scary things to keep me up til 2 am,-"

"Like a normal person would." Daraya couldn't help but interrupt, looking smug with a smirk on her face. Dammek had obvious shadows under his eyes so it wasn't a secret that he stayed up late regularly.

"Hurrhurrhurr thank you Daraya, but yeah. It was some games you can play to supposedly either, summon a demon..ghost or some other bullcrap. I didn't get too invested in it until i read about a game you can play in an elevator." At this point his friends were quiet and listening with some intent to what Dammek was saying. "You enter in specific floor numbers and if you do it correctly you'll be taken to a different dimension."

Daraya arched her brow at the information. It sounded vaguely familiar..."I think i know about that. There was this conspiracy video I might have watched where it showed a woman doing something like that. She vanished and was found in the water tower...weeks later i think? I can't remember exactly."

"Daraya you don't believe it actually works do you?" Tyzias inquired. She wasn't much of a spiritualist but she was familiar with the case at face value. Not a lot scared her. 

Daraya just managed to shrug. "I dunno. I try not to mess with that shit regardless if its real or not. Gives off bad vibes yknow? " 

Kuprum scratched his neck and looked back at Dammek. "You thinking about playing that game or something?" He didn't have a fear of the supernatural per say. He just never really had the attention span to pay attention to it much. 

Dammek's smile didn't falter. "I mean i think it could be fun. That or cool to disprove it yknow. Daraya you live at a condo, do we have access to the elevator?"

"I mean yeah...I dunno Dammek. We got homework don't we? or shit to study for..?"

Dammek stuck his hands back in his pocket and tried to change his tone to reassure her. "It'll only take 10 to 15 minutes if our game isn't interrupted. It isn't that tedious if i have the instructions out with me. Its cool if you don't wanna do it. I never really got the chance to play something like this and your place just came to mind."

His friends were quiet while in thought. Kuprum finally spoke up, "If i get to watch you piss your pants out of fright then it will sure be worth it loooooolllll"

"Kuprum" Dammek said, holding his boyfriend's shoulders and looking into his eyes intensely. "We said you saying 'lol' out loud isn't cool. Nor is it attractive. If you do it again I'm getting you a jar."

Kuprum wiggled his brows which only caused Dammek to groan. Daraya picked at the hem of her shirt sleeve, while Tyzias nudged her.

"Relax Daraya. Dammek most likely will fuck it up. So the most likely thing that will happen is we waste our time and Kuprum scares Dammek just to make the disappointment less heavy. If you don't wanna be in the elevator, you wanna wait at the base level?"

Daraya huffed a bit. "Fuck that, I'd rather watch this hit the fan in person thanks." Then Daraya lead the way to her condo building. 

Once they got inside Dammek kept his browser open while they waited for the elevator to come to the bottom floor. Daraya looked like she couldn't shake the feeling something bad was going to happen. Tyzias slipped the thermos back into her backpack and then flung it back onto her arm. Once, the elevator doors opened up, the 4 of them looked around to see if anyone else was going to get in. One after the other, they filed in quickly and Dammek pressed the buttons to make the doors shut. He looked over the instructions one more time and looked behind at his friends.

"Ready?" He wouldn't admit it outright but he was slightly anxious. The outcome of the game actually working made him a bit nervous..

"Yeah man." "Do it for the vine!" "shut up Kuprum."

They all seemed to be in agreement so Dammek started the process. He hit the button for the fourth floor and told his friends not to exit the elevator just yet. The doors opened then shut. His friends were less chatty as Dammek was working the buttons. Maybe they too were a bit nervous? Dammek could only guess. He hit the button for the second floor and down they went. He noticed a detail involving the 6th step. He'd certainly have to tell his friends about it.

"Okay so. When you see me hitting the button for the 5th floor, a lady might come into the elevator. We are not supposed to look at her at all or 'supposedly' she will take us away with her."

"Take us where? Ooor does it not say?" Tyzias sighed at seeing Dammek shrug his shoulders. "of course it doesnt say." She mumbled. She glanced over at Daraya and patted her back. "Its gonna be over before we know it. Then it will be a big inside joke between us all. Kay?"

Daraya took a deep breath and nodded. "Kay." 

While they were talking, Dammek was trying not to think while pressing all the required buttons. They went from the second floor, to the sixth floor, to the second floor once more..... Then the fifth floor. Kuprum walked right behind Dammek. He wasn't hiding from anything, he just wanted to be right by Dammek in case something got any funny ideas. Tyzias and Daraya went on the same side of the elevator as Dammek and Kuprum.  
Just like Dammek said, the doors opened and they heard someone step inside. Their footsteps were so unnaturally quiet, that the fear in that tiny space just intensified.

'It could just be some regular woman. It couldn't be part of the game...' Dammek thought to himself. 

However, none of them looked at her. None of them glanced at her. None of them spoke to her. Dammek just quickly hit the next floor on the list. Instead of going down to the first floor, they felt the elevator go upwards... Up..up. up.. All the way to the 10th floor. Tyzias held her breath a little and wrapped her arm around Daraya. All of them had a horrifying realization at once. They had seen Dammek press the first floor button and the 10th floor button was not lit up at all.  
The elevator doors opened once more and all they could do is stare at the open doorway. Dammek signaled to his friends to at least step outside the elevator. Whispering to them that they can just walk back in and go back. They slowly stepped out of the elevator, dread overwhelming them to the point where the hairs on their neck were standing up. 

Once all of them had stepped outside of the elevator, they got a good view of the distorted tenth floor around them. It looked just like the other floors of the condominium...except it was dimly lit. At the farthest end of the hall appeared to be a long red cross on the wall. The lights weren't normal looking either...they were tinted a purple color? Daraya's breathing was accelerating at that point. 

'Its real.. its real.." she could be heard mumbling.

Just as the reality sunk in, they heard a quiet feminine voice behind them.

"Where are you going?" The voice spoke. It almost sounded human.

Tyzias instinctively turned to the noise, but Kuprum tried to force her to not look behind them. It was too late. Tyzias saw the 'woman' that was in the elevator with them. Her appearance flickered between a long dark haired woman, and just a mass of dark energy that still glowed somehow. She dropped her bag in fear, as the woman lunged forward at Tyzias. Tyzias screamed as the demonic entity was right on top of her. Daraya was paralyzed in fear. She tried to command her body to move, do something.. anything to help Tyzias. Dammek let go of Kuprum's arm and tried to kick the entity off of Tyzias. It was then that he got a much better look at her. She lacked pupils as her eyes were completely filled with black. It was faint but there almost appeared to be horns on her head. The woman made an inhuman growling sound and lunged for Dammek next. Kuprum slammed himself against her, causing the demon to hit the wall. Daraya finally budged and tried to help Tyzias up. Tyzias looked down the other hall way and shrieked. Other masses of dark energy, like the woman, were coming towards them. 

Perhaps it was the fear in Daraya, or the demon's effect on her..whatever the case was, Daraya fainted on the spot. The original demon from the elevator rose back up and had Kuprum raised up by his neck. His face already starting to turn blue. Dammek was screaming and trying to punch the demon, but his hands kept phasing right through her. Tyzias grabbed Daraya and dragged her back inside the elevator. Looking at her friend for what she believed was the last time. Seeing Kuprum being choked by the demon, and the hoards of other demons going towards her friends..She knew something had to keep them distracted so they could escape. 

Tyzias dashed out of the elevator and yelled at the demon at the top of her lungs "HEY!!!!! IM THE ONE WHO LOOKED AT YOU! NOT HIM!!! COME AT ME YOU DICK FUCKERS!!!!"

The demon dropped Kuprum like a rag doll as he gasped for air. Dammek dashed over to his boyfriend and tried to get him back on his feet. When he looked back up..he saw something that would haunt him forever.  
He saw demons cornering Tyzias, one of them slashed her face so badly that her glasses broke upon impact. Their claw going into her eye socket, causing blood to pour out of it. She barely managed to look at Dammek while she was being grabbed by dozens of demons. She was in too much pain to speak, all she could do is mouth a phrase at him.

'Get back to the elevator.' Her face stained with blood and tears as she tried to fight the demons off with what strength she had left. 

Kuprum almost vomited at the sight but saw what Tyzias said. Dammek wasn't budging. He looked like he wanted to dash towards the hoard and get her out of there. Kuprum bit his lip and felt hot tears fell down his face. He grabbed Dammek and dragged him back to the elevator. Dammek tried screaming in protest, kicking and thrashing.. He didn't want to leave her behind. That moment felt like it was in slow motion. He was reliving all the memories he had with her.. Elementary school.. Middle school graduation.. Her being the wingman for Dammek. It was too much for him. Kuprum snatched Dammek's phone up from the floor and practically kicked the button to close the elevator doors. A demon was running right towards the doorway before it shut in its face. Kuprum's hands were shaking badly..He entered the floor pattern in reverse as the instructions said. Dammek was crying on the floor, only noticing that Daraya wasn't there on the floor of the elevator Dammek looked around frantically. He couldn't process anything as he was being haunted by the image of Tyzias' eye being gouged out, Daraya being missing. He was feeling so much at once. Fear. Melancholic. Loss. Anger. All he could do is look at Kuprum and belt out.

"Why???? Why did you pull me back?! We could have saved her!! We could have-"

"WE COULDN'T DO ANYTHING DAMMEK!" Kuprum was taken aback by him yelling at Dammek He dropped to Dammek's level and hugged him. "Im sorry... Im sorry... Dammek.. we couldn't have done anything..We aren't holy warriors o-or...any of the heroes we used to read about. Tyzias knew that...but she wanted to play hero anyway.. I'd be dead if it wasn't for her."

Dammek tried to breath calmly but he could only wail and choke on his sobs. "Stupid... Stupid...Even Daraya...."

Kuprum looked at the article Dammek had on earlier and almost felt relief for a second. "She...fainted right...?"

"Y-yeah..." He looked over at his phone and read the paragraph right by Kuprum's thumb.

It had said that if anyone had fainted during the process, they would wake up at home. They looked around the elevator and didn't see her bag either. They prayed that she was at home and safe. Kuprum held Dammek for what seemed like forever as they repeated the steps to get out of the hell loop. Once it was over they went right to Daraya's floor. their bags in hand, including Tyzias' and banged on Daraya's door. They needed to see if she was okay. Something. Anything. They heard activity behind the door and it slowly opened. To their relief it was Daraya, who looked like she took a long nap. 

"Guys what the hell...I had the worst fucking nightmare-" Her words trailed off, seeing fresh bruising around Kuprum's neck from being choked.

All of them held each other and just cried. This wasn't how their day was supposed to go. It was supposed to harmless fun. Their minds were swimming with too much information to communicate with each other in that moment. The three of them sat on Daraya's couch. Looking at Tyzias' leftover backpack. It was like a nightmare they couldn't wake up from. What were they supposed to say to her parents..? Would even calling the police do anything? It was inevitable. 

That evening the condo was filled with police, trying to find Tyzias and look for clues on her whereabouts. Dammek couldn't even bring himself to speak. Daraya had lied to the cops saying that they were playing a game with the elevator and someone kidnapped Tyzias. Kuprum had gotten injured in the struggle and Daraya was knocked unconscious. That was their story. Dammek couldn't look at Tyzias' parents at all. He knew it was HIS fault this happened. If he had just forgotten about that stupid game then Tyzias would still be with them. Kuprum didn't leave Dammek's side the entire time, and the two of them did the same for Daraya. They all wanted to spend the night together but Daraya's parents were going to be relocated, as they feared for their daughter's safety. 

Kuprum and Dammek hugged her for a long time, until she was called back to the car.

"I'll.. call you guys when we get to, wherever the police think is safe.. Its..pointless but its even more pointless to tell them that..."

Dammek couldn't even fake a smile. He nodded and wished her a safe trip. Kuprum was going to say something to Dammek, when they were approached by an officer that they hadn't seen in the condo before. 

"Sorry boys, I know you're tired of questions but I have just a few for you." She flashed her ID and badge at them. "Officer Pyrope. They like to call me Redglare because of my glasses." 

She wore red tinted shades and looked fairly young compared to the other officers. Dammek just stared at her and Kuprum spoke for the both of them.

"What else are they interrogating us for now?" He said almost in a hiss. He was tired. Dammek was tired. They just wanted to go home. 

"Sorry again. Its just a detail i need cleared up. You 4 played a game in the elevator...Was it a sort of..Paranormal game like bloody mary or something..?" Despite how odd her question was, she looked completely serious. This detail made Dammek stand up a bit straighter. 

"Yeah...It..didn't work though." He knew if he told an officer the truth, that his parents would be notified and then he'd be drugged up on the couch. 

Redglare just nodded at them. "Did you think you saw anything weird..? Like shadows or.."

"If you're trying to joke us then you'd be better off leaving us alone-"

"Im not Mr.Maxlol its a serious question. I understand though. This is still fresh and hurts severely." She took out a piece of paper and wrote her phone number on it. Then handed it to Dammek. "If you remember anything, call me personally. I just want to help boys. Thats all. Go meet up with your parents, we'll try to keep things moving here." She sympathetically smiled at them and walked off into the building. 

 

That building 4 years later was almost completely empty. The owners were going to remodel it since the kidnapping of Tyzias. To the surprise of everyone but Daraya, Kuprum and Dammek; they never found her. In the present, a much older Dammek stood outside the building with a guy his age. He had long hair and two different colored eyes. One blue and one teal. The man almost looked like he got goosebumps from being near the place.

"You weren't kidding Dammek. After the incident this place feels like a hotbed for them."

"I'm not surprised you picked that up Azdaja. Guess that means you're the real deal." Dammek slipped his shades off his face and into his pocket.

Azdaja cleared his throat to get Dammek's attention. "You still left a few holes in your story Dammek. Daraya's fate..what the police woman wanted.... What happened to Kuprum.."

Hearing his name made Dammek take a deep breath, the cold made it visible like cigarette smoke.  
"I guess I can tell you that on the way back."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> woof!!  
> So that's the first chapter. It was rather straight forward but the next chapter will be more about how the event affected Dammek Kuprum and Daraya emotionally.  
> Also to set the record straight, when they played the elevator game, Dammek Kuprum Daraya and Tyzias were all around the age of 16 or 17. In the 'present day' of the story they're about 21 or 22.  
> Thanks so much for reading this chapter. More questions will be answered soon 8)  
> -C


	3. 21 guns(They're All Under His Bed)

Azdaja stuck his hands in his pocket as he followed Dammek into a rather mellow looking diner. Dammek still hadn't answered Azdaja's questions quite yet, this made Azdaja feel like perhaps he asked a rather off limit question about Kuprum. 

Dammek sat in a booth, then gestured for Azdaja to sit across from him. "You aren't trying to peer inside my head are you Azdaja?" He looked at Azdaja, unblinking, as he folded up his shades. 

Azdaja jumped just a little, feeling hot in the face from embarrassment. "Look. Your head is like white noise. Even if I wanted to, you're a tough person to figure out. It's almost fascinating."

Dammek raised a brow, smirked and stuck his hands in his hair. "I mean no offense Azdaja you're not my type-"

"I didn't mean that romantically Dammek. For now my true passion is research. That is why I accepted your offer to discuss the matters of Prospit..to someone who'd understand." Azdaja's words trailed off for a moment, then he refocused himself to look back at Dammek. "I'm no empath Dammek, but if my previous questions from earlier offended you or made you uncomfortable-."

"-Stop. Stop. Don't worry about that. I left you on a bit of a cliffhanger there." His eyes focused on a Waitress coming over to take their orders, "Just a black coffee for me please."

The waitress had short dark hair slicked back and a distinctive beauty mark on her chin. She just raised her brows and then glanced at Azdaja. Something about her eyes made chills go up Azdaja's spine. He knew this sensation she was giving off. Dammek didn't seem to have a clue, but not everyone was like Azdaja... Azdaja refocused his eyes on the waitress and just laid back in the booth chair. 

"Scrambled eggs for me please." He watched her carefully as she left the table writing down their very simple order. Azdaja sighed in relief then looked back at Dammek. "You know she's-"

"Shh. Azdaja. If you act like something is up you'll stick out like a sore thumb. Keep your shtick on the DL. Besides. There are possible witnesses here and there. Who knows how many of them are human." Dammek mumbled carefully and quietly. It didn't seem like anyone was paying attention to them anyway. 

"Right.." His eyes stared off into space for what felt like forever. 

Dammek sighed and leaned forward a bit onto the table. "You really wanna know what happened to Kuprum?"

Azdaja perked up just a tad bit, hiding a smile after being able to tell Dammek was trying to avert his attention elsewhere. It was the first thing he had been able to read on Dammek the entire evening. "Sure. If you suddenly feel up for discussing it. oh...Don't forget Daraya. She just sort of vanished from your story."

"Well. Its not that deep honestly." Dammek's tone drastically shifted, he sounded much older than he looked. Somber and distant. "Daraya never got over Tyzias' disappearance. She never even saw...Y'know." He took his coffee from the waitress and nodded at her as a thank you. Taking a slow sip to gather his thoughts. "She grew distant. Got so paranoid about 'those folks' coming back for her one day. Then one day, she told Kuprum and I to stop texting her. I..I'd be lying if i said it didn't hurt, but I understand her reasoning. She thought being around us might make her stick out to 'them' more. Like a lamp to a moth. Wasn't that long after the incident, that she cut us off. I haven't heard from her in years. I'd check her social media accounts, if i didn't get rid of mine years ago." After sipping his coffee again, he looked at Azdaja.

"Just like that huh....? Doesn't seem that difficult for people to just fall in and out of your life." Azdaja's tone almost. Sounded sad..?

"Join the club. Back on track though, you asked about Kuprum." Dammek tried not to. He tried with all his might not to.

Dammek slowly began to recall the last time they spoke.

He was on his 3rd day without sleep. The shadows under his eyes were as dark as ever, hair an oily mess. Those days he smelled distinctively like salt as a form of protection. If Dammek thought about that detail too hard he'd cringe. Kuprum somehow...looked the same. It pissed Dammek off deep down inside him. It almost felt like he didn't care as much as Dammek did. He saw the same shit. So why was he the less damaged one?? Funnily enough, their last conversation was about that

"You promised you'd sleep tonight! How much longer are you going to keep this up?!"

"Kuprum, you don't understand-"

"How can I NOT understand Dammek. I was right there. I saw what happened. I have a scar on my fucking neck for christ sake."

"You sure don't fucking act like it. I'm doing all this research to protect us. Find ways to keep those monsters away! Ever since they fucking took her... ever since i made that stupid mistake!! If... If i just look hard enough, maybe there's a way to bring her back..-"

"DAMMEK SHUT UP!!! You dont think that shit hurt me...? You don't think I wasn't traumatized by that???? Just because I'm not in the same state as you, doesn't mean I'm not suffering! I'm... I'm not obssessed with this like you are! Don't you think if you keep looking into this, you'll just end up making it easier for them to find you????"

"You don't know that Kuprum, you don't know anything about this stuff! You're just the same stupid memeloving shitlord from highschool! What I'm doing is best for US! Because I'd end up saving you!"

".....This consumed you Dammek. You aren't the same person anymore..."

"No one is after trauma."

"Dammek...I can't. I can't keep fighting you anymore.-"

"K!! K-Kuprum don't say that, don't you dARE FINISH YOUR SENTENCE!!"

"I'm sorry Dammek...I am. But I think Daraya was right. We need to see other people.. it's what is best for the both of us."

"NO ITS NOT, IT'S BETTER FOR YOU!!! YOU'RE THE ONLY ONE WHO WOULD UNDERSTAND...W...WHAT HAPPENED..I'D...I'd be alone..Please... Kuprum Please... PleASE DON'T LEAVE ME!!"

The image of Kuprum leaving him, sobbing on the floor, filled Dammek's mind. He relived that moment, even if it was only brief instances. What they said was still perfectly etched into his mind. At a mere glance, it looked like Azdaja picked up on everything Dammek recalled internally. This realization snapped Dammek back to reality.

"Didn't miss a beat did you?" Dammek said, almost impressed even. "Now I know you're the real deal."

"I saw it all. Though, your recollection of the events are scattered all over the place. I'm not too surprised however. Not everyone can have a perfect memory after traumatic events. Not even someone like myself. Though its obvious you tried to repress that event as much as you could." Azdaja cut his words short when he could see the waitress staring at them, once she overheard some of their conversation. 

"What...? Your ESP picked up on someone..?" Dammek whispered, feeling the intense vibes coming off of Azdaja.

"Yeah. Her." He grabbed his jacket and looked at the door. 

Dammek gave a quick nod to Azdaja, and they booked it out of the diner. They didn't even look back to see if she followed them. Azdaja could barely sense her presence, almost like a faint scent. Dammek led the way to where he parked his motorbike, sprinting down several odd turns and hopping over a few fences. Azdaja was going to strangle Dammek after the chase was over, he hadn't run so much in his life. Then the area became overwhelming full of dark energy, as someone was already leaning against Dammek's bike. 

"Nice ride chief....By the way..You didn't pay." 

Dammek had his hand in his pocket, holding a pistol tightly, but keeping it covered for the time being. "Sorry about that, maybe we can work something out with the ACTUAL waitress of the diner." 

"Mm. You only found me out because of that ESPer you got with you." Her eyes flickered, to instead of having pupils, her eyes were completely filled with a red color. As quick as her eyes changed, they went back to normal. "You're doing a lot of nosing around Dammek."

"You know who he is??"

The demon snapped at Azdaja, "Of course I know who he is. Some hunters catch our eye down in Derse. Smallfry there shouldn't take that as a compliment." She stared down Dammek, with a condescending tone.

The mention of Derse made Azdaja perk up a little, "Derse...is that what you call it-"

"Shut up Daja, for one second... So what are you really here for then? If you wanted to kill me, you could have done it with your eyes closed."

The demon raised her brows and chuckled just a little. "Nice to see you don't underestimate us. Its a breath of fresh air. Don't get so cocky kid. You think you know what you're doing but I'm here to issue a warning. There are so many kinds of bad things like me, you wouldn't be able to comprehend the numbers."

"You're just a messenger then. You probably aren't a threat-"

Azdaja almost fell over, at how fast the demon moved to Dammek. She lifted him off the ground by his neck, her fingertips were coal black. The blackest Azdaja had ever seen. He had seen demons. He had seen them become hostile, but never one like this.

"Someone knows what your end goal is.. and they want you dead if you're gonna keep sticking your nose into our affairs."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gave a slight preview on Dammek's fallout with Kuprum. More will be revealed on Kuprum's introductory chapter. But more and more people are added to the cast 80 and still a lot more questions. Im rubbing my hands like a fly mwahahaha.
> 
> Also I didn't forget about Redglare, her significance will be revealed next chapter 8) Hope you guys stick with me to see it!~  
> -C


	4. Smells like Teen Spirit and Tramua

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Galekh and Mallek finally make their debut, as Azdaja learns just how Dammek's group operates. After he settles down of course. A chapter to finally let some of the guys breathe.  
> At least until the final member of the group shows up fashionably late.

The demoness had a strong grip on Dammek's neck, but not enough to choke him. Dammek's mind flashed back to Kuprum, all those years ago, being strangled by the demon. His instincts wanted to take over, to scratch and claw at the leering demoness. It was only when he remembered Azdaja was there too, that he came to his senses. Dammek managed to reach into his pocket and throw out a heap of salt onto the demoness' face. Thus causing her to drop him, holding her burning face while hissing in pain. Dammek scrambled onto his feet and backed away from the demoness. The parts of her face, that were burned by the salt, had turned a duller color of her skin. One of her eyes was dilated and what looked like horns were starting to protrude from her head. 

"You've got some fucking nerve Dammek..." She hissed between her teeth.

"You were the one choking him after you said, you were 'just delivering a message.'"Azdaja quickly spat out after stumbling over to Dammek's side. 

The demoness snickered at his piss poor attempt, to include himself in the situation. "You didn't help him either. What kind of help are gathering for your team Dammek? Cowards?" Dammek sneered in response to her, and showed her just how clean his middle finger was. "Classy. I think I've made my point. You're being watched Dammek." The demoness looked towards Azdaja. "Better consider if this is really worth teaming with him. There are much worse demons than me out there."

"I know. They took my friend." Dammek stood firmly. "If i gotta blow up a few demon heads in order to find out what happened, so be it."

The demoness just laughed at his response, almost in a condescending manner. "You have no idea what you're up against. I can't wait to see what happens. Keep us entertained meatbags." She said while dissolving into smoke. It was almost impossible to tell in what direction she left in. 

Azdaja took a few deep breaths to calm himself down. A real demon was just in front of him. A REAL demon. Dammek had remained so calm...Azdaja guessed Dammek had been in worse scenarios than that. Except for the one he was just told. Dammek stretched and rubbed his neck a bit. No signs of damage, it only felt like it was going to bruise. Sweet.

"Cool. Xigisi is gonna be on my ass about this." Dammek grumbled, picking up

Azdaja raised his brow a little. "One of your team mates?" Dammek briefly mentioned he didn't work totally alone, but he had not name dropped them until then. Maybe out of caution. 

Dammek chuckled, picked up his keys and proceeded to type up a lengthy text to someone. He slipped his phone back inside his pocket before hopping onto his bike. He had to give the play by play to Galekh, before showing up. He had to give the big guy SOME insight before showing up with a few bruises. "Come on 'Daja You oughta be introduced to our base and the gremlins in it. Not. actual gremlins."

Azdaja questionably folded his arms at Dammek, raising a brow."Do gremlins exist?"

"My ex." Dammek snickered. He didn't get discouraged as Azdaja rolled his eyes. 

Azdaja bit his lip, staring at the motorcycle in front of him. Nervously, he got onto the seat and looked at Dammek. 

"What do..I do? I..need to hang onto something."

Dammek snickered. " Wrap your arms around my waist. Easy rider style, all the way to salvation." Azdaja narrowed his eyes and Dammek shrugged. "You can make this gay or not. I'm all about business baby."

Azdaja kept the bits of evidence against his statement, pinned for later use. He winced as the motorcycle revved to life and threw his arms around Dammek. Fearful of falling off. His surroundings turned into a colorful blur around him, maybe because of the speed of the motorcycle. Despite only seeing the back of Dammek, his personal energy gave off almost a hint of anxiety. 

Dammek kept his eyes on the road and tried his hardest to focus on getting home. His mind however had a strangle hold on him, much like the demoness not too long ago. Here he was, opening himself up to a semi-stranger. He had to. He told himself this over and over. Though it didn't make any of it any easier. The more he opened up to someone, the harder it would be, to sever that tie with them. Kuprum. Tyzias. Daraya. All of those people were evidence of that ideal.  
He sighed, feeling the existential dread creep on him. There was a purpose to his attempts on recruiting a psychic, he identified a demon..So there was the proof in front of him. Or rather hanging onto his back. The thoughts deep within his mind, just couldn't leave him alone. 

'He's going to betray you. He's working for the enemy. How do you know he will live? Are you ready to watch him fade like Tyzias? Can you handle it? Are you ready? What if you fail him? What if he takes what he learned about you and uses it against you. Will you even succeed? What will you gain from this? This is pointless.  
Can you trust him??'

The thoughts pulsed through his head. Predictably, he had to breathe more. The louder the thoughts got, the more he breathed. His face started to tingle, as if the blood was draining from it. He could feel himself leaning towards the front of the cycle. Further. Further.  
Until, Azdaja tapped his shoulder, causing him to jolt upright. The volatile meeting in his mind being paused. 

"Dammek? You stopped the cycle in front of this place and just froze. You might need to get inside.."

Fuck. Azdaja was sort of a mind reader. How much did he pick up on what just happened? Dammek took one deep and shaky breath and slid off the cycle. He smoothed his hair out and adjusted his shades. Taking that moment to just relax for a second.  
"Sorry. I spaced out a bit. Don't worry about it." He looked up at the business building and sighed. "Yeah. This is the joint."

The building was on a suburban street, it looked like it was two stories high. There were solar panels on the roof..it looked surprisingly normal for a demon hunter headquarters. Despite it being dark out, Azdaja could clearly tell the windows were covered by curtains, or just blacked out. Circumstance in mind, it made sense. He glanced at Dammek, who seemed to be catching his breath. Azdaja said nothing about it and waited for Dammek to park his motorcycle in the side garage. 

Dammek closed up the garage and walked to unlock the front door. There was an odd silence between the two, it was short lived when the door opened. The room looked very business like. A desk, almost resembling a check in desk, with a computer and....a curly haired guy rising up out of the chair. Good lord he was tall, Azdaja had to guess six feet. The guy had a wide body and could probably knock out Azdaja with a punch if he wanted to. 

The guy Looked Dammek over and clicked his tongue, his judging blue eyes staring at him behind his glasses.  
"When I had gotten your text, I knew very well you didn't perish encountering that demoness. HOWEVER, the location of your encounter was not suitable for battle of any kind. I have little doubt that you went in there unprepared, but to provoke a demon while you have a new person with you...Is so-"

"Nice to see you too Galekh. Yeah yeah speaking of the new guy, this is Azdaja Knelax. Azdaja, brickhouse here is Galekh Xigisi." Dammek said nonchalantly. 

Galekh pushed his glasses up and took a look at Azdaja. "Ah. So you are the ESP Dammek informed us about. I mean no offense; I take my ally’s safety seriously, as expected when you deal in supernatural beings." Galekh stated while moving his hands a bit while he spoke. "Though that's obvious, given your psychic circumstance.." He mumbled under his breath. 

Azdaja smirked a little. "Well yes. In fact I've seen ghosts since I was-"

"Okay thats great. You'll have more time to chat, after I show you around." Dammek announced while walking past them. Galekh huffed, folded his arms behind his back and returned the desk he was at. 

Azdaja rolled his eyes a little and followed Dammek. Right across from a door to the garage was a staircase that lead to the second floor. Even though he was on the first step, he could hear someone typing hard on a keyboard. At first, Azdaja assumed it was Galekh, since he wasnt that far away. Once they reached the top of the steps, a guy on the couch was typing loudly and quickly on his laptop. His hair was shaved on both sides, leaving a sort of flat....mohawk? Azdaja wasn't too familiar with terminology of things like that. 

Dammek nodded towards the guy, and he took his headphones off. "Mallek, this is Azdaja Knelax. He's the ESP. Azdaja, this is Mallek Adalov. He's pretty good at computers."

Mallek stretched and laughed a little. "I'm doing a whole lot of nothing right now, do not be fooled by my lightning fast fingers. I'm just ordering from Insomnia Cookies." He then looked at Azdaja and raised his head in acknowledgement. "Welcome to the bullshit brigade."

"That's...an interesting way to put it." Azdaja remarked, he hadn't even noticed that Dammek was walking ahead. "Do you ever stop for a second..?"

"Nah. Besides im just letting you know that, that room down this hall, is mine. Don't go in it unless I ask you to. Weapon and gear storage is in the attic area. We'll have a group meeting here in a lil bit. Make yourself comfy." Dammek remarked. He then went into his room and shut the door behind him. 

Azdaja could have sworn he heard a meow on the other side of the door, but figured he'd meet the cat later on. With that hasty introduction out of the way, Azdaja decided to browse the place, a bit more to his leisure. He looked at the bookshelf, located next to the couch Mallek was on. The selection didn't surprise Azdaja very much. Book of the forbidden...Paranormal dictionary.. there were a few Latin titles and demonology books, but Azdaja glossed right over them. One book had an author that caught his eye. He pulled the book out and ran his fingers across the cover. It was pure leather. It looked like a demon hunter guide. He flipped to the inside of the leather cover, and his assumption was correct. It was written by 'N.Redglare.' 

"That's the oldest book we got in the joint." Mallek had noticed Azdaja and slipped his headphones off again. 

"You know who wrote this? Dammek..sort of spoke about her." 

Mallek nodded. "Yeah. She was the uh....Police officer in his story. Guess he didn't finish telling you about that stuff huh. Can't blame him. Shit was wack." He reached under the couch and pulled out a box. Popped it open and pulled out a pre rolled blunt. "You smoke?"

Azdaja shook his head no.

"Theen you aren't allergic to it? Just checking in case the smoke bothers you." 

"It doesn't dude. I just..never tried I guess? Go ahead smoke it."

Mallek smirked. "Nice." He lit the blunt, took a few hits and finally spoke again. "She was kinda his mentor I think. He doesn't talk about his past too much y'know. We all got introduced to the supernatural in a pretty shitty way. Dammek was lucky to have a professional hunter looking over him. Woulda killed to have someone like that."

Azdaja sat down across from Mallek and had to think for a moment. "Yeah. He told me bits of it...the elevator game mostly. I can't say something traumatic like that happened to me."

"Thought you saw the boogeyman all the time as a kid?" Mallek asked while blowing smoke away from Azdaja. 

Azdaja chuckled at the idea. "You aren't wrong. It kinda runs in my family, so it was taken seriously. I got pretty good at detecting specters and demons." His smile faded as he fidgeted with his fingers. "I...thought I'd be ready to face a demon head on though."

Mallek perked up. "Yeah. I heard from Galekh. You kinda froze up after she showed herself?" Azdaja nodded and Mallek stuck his lighter back in his pocket. "That's not unusual man. Happens to us the first few times." Mallek pointed at two lines that ran through his right eyebrow. "I froze up and the fucker clawed at my face. I was real lucky that Dammek was nearby. After that I got my piercings swapped out for Iron ones. I wouldn't recommend that to everyone, because you might be allergic and not know it. 

Azdaja gazed at Mallek's eyebrow then looked at him questionably. He..didn't seem to be lying, but he talked about it nonchalantly. "I can't tell if you're strong for talking about that so casually, or you're high as shit."

"HA! Man one blunt doesn't wreck my shit. I just use it to help me focus, though I could get really buzzed if I wanted to. Buuuuuut what impression would that make?" Mallek raised his brows at Azdaja. 

Just as he said that, they heard someone come up the steps, followed by a sound of someone hitting the wall. Mallek sat up a little "Marco!"

Galekh reached the top of the steps, rubbing the top of his head. "Polo..."

"pfft. Got up here too quickly?" 

Galekh felt hot in the face out of embarrassment. "I locked up early. Do not worry, I prepped the cameras just in case. I wanted to make sure it was ready, before coming back up here to join in the conversation.-"

"-But you went too fast and bonked your head huh? Adorkable." Mallek snickered while Galekh huffed at him. 

Azdaja watched them for a minute and sat up when a conclusion hit him like a truck. Galekh's energy kinda gave him a bit of info. "Are you two dating?" This statement got Mallek to chuckle. Galekh just folded his arms a little. 

"Nah. I can see where you got the idea, but I already got a man." Mallek stretched.

"You do? Since when? I mean-I'm curious since this is the first time you mentioned your new significant other, Mallek." Galekh inquired. Azdaja seemed to be the only one to pick up on it, Galekh seemed to be a bit disappointed. Poor guy seemed confused. 

"mmmm I'll give deets later on. Dammek would wanna hear it too." Mallek stuck his tongue out a little while Azdaja shot him a look.

"If its your sex life count me out." 

"Aw come on Azdaja, I wouldn't give those deets out first." 

"Details." Galekh mumbled. 

"DEET" Mallek spouted while closing his laptop. He then looked at the door to Dammek's room. Dammek rolled out carrying a fat cat in his arms. "Hey Buck! 'Sup Dammek. Is that a hickey or did you get fucked over by a demon?" he chuckled before Dammek tosses a can at his head.

"Yeah yeah, I did. Not in the good way either." He carefully sat his cat down on the floor, pulled a chair up and sat in it. Looking at his group. "Either way, we have to have a pow-wow before anyone goes off to do anything. First thing, Galekh, you know where she is?"

Galekh straightened himself out. "Ah..One moment." He checked his phone quickly and sighed in relief. "She's here."

Azdaja's hair on his neck, stood up. Something similar to the Demoness back at the diner, was nearby. It had to be. No other entity gave him this feeling...

The front door in the distance shut, followed by someone coming up the steps. A woman with glasses, short hair, and turquoise lipstick to match her eyes; reaches the top step. The hauntingly familiar vibe made goosebumps form over his skin as she walked towards them. Galekh smiled. 

"Speak of the devil. Evening Stelsa." Galekh said to her.

She smiled back.


End file.
